Songs for a New World — Page 2

I was at invited dress last night and WOW! Mykal Kilgore is a force to be reckoned with. What a voice (!!!!) and his emotion makes his performance even better.

So glad to hear this! It's been a while since I've seen a production and I'm excited to see it this evening. Anyone recall the runtime? Still 90 minutes?

Mildred Plotka said: "Is Shoshanna Bean incapable of singing a song as it was written? And her mini-me in the other role is taking quite a few liberties as well. Pass."

I feel this way more and more about singers who have to riff every line, every note. It's a talent and MANY great moments in music and musicals exist because the original singer riffed or a musical director told them to go up an octave or something, sure, but if they were doing a scene from, say, A Streetcar Named Desire and Shoshanna just started adding and changing words, would be stand for it as much?

The evening was pleasant enough and the performers all had lovely voices. Some were more invested and crisper story tellers than others. The thread that holds the show together was a little bare and the dancers could have been used a little more sparingly but all in all I enjoyed it. At times the minimalistic staging needed more motivation. The biggest disappointment was feeling emotionally disconnected to the material.

Updated On: 6/27/18 at 02:05 PM

Mildred Plotka said: "I think that riffing nonsense is fine for pop music, but when you do it every time on every song, one has to wonder if it’s a cover up for lack of actual singing abilities."



Riffing is singing, and usually a complement to the song as written. Unless you are complaining about POOR riffing, how would it be a cover for singing ability? I think a complaint that TOO MUCH riffing may be valid depending on tastes, but I don't think it's a comment on ability.

I was there tonight too and really enjoyed the performance. Mykal Kilgore is a STAR. Damn. He reminded me of a young Billy Porter. And Solea Pfeiffer was really lovely too. Always nice to see some fresh, new talent on a New York stage. Loved the new orchestrations and after the painful day in politics, a little hope and comfort at the theater was most welcome.

A couple thoughts on riffing:

There was a fair amount tonight, but there were equally many moments of restraint. The style of singing definitely felt appropriate in a song cycle like this, where each number is like a mini cabaret performance anyway. If this had been a production of Dear World, then yes, it would have been infuriating to hear The Tea Party riffed to shreds. Not all contemporary pop/rock musical theater needs to be riffed- for example, Alice Ripley didn’t riff her way through Next to Normal.

In opera, I guess we could compare riffing to adding ornamentation to an aria, but even there, you sing it through once as written and then on the repeat you do it again with all your own added notes. If it were all riffed then the ornamentation would be meaningless. You have to hear it straight in order to appreciate what the artist an add to the aria.

In modern pop singing, riffing absolutely helps plenty of singers cover up their lack of abilities. One of the most difficult things you can do in music is hold a sustained note, especially one sung piano or pianissimo, and not go flat or sharp. If you feel yourself going flat, just riff a descending scale into the line and cover it up. Riffing often feels like a more acceptable way to scoop up and find a pitch. Obviously this isn’t always the case, but if a singer has a bad ear for pitch, it can save you from jumping to wrong note. You can sense this all the time on top 40 radio.

Going tomorrow night. Looking forward to it. This music holds a special place in my life.

Are they selling a tee shirt for this?

Updated On: 6/28/18 at 11:16 PM

uncageg said: "Going tomorrow night. Looking forward to it. This music holds a specialplace in my life.

Are they selling a tee shirt for this?"

They are selling black tee shirts with all three of the off-center show names on it. it's pretty, but they only have them to up to XL. They have the same pattern on a tote bag.

I was underwhelmed by the show tonight. I kept finding myself distracted by other things, which means my interest wasn't fully engaged. I kept noticing the reflection of the EXIT signs in bottom of the reflective set piece, and it felt like James Sampliner as pianist and conductor was overplaying and drawing focus from the singers. And I did not understand the presence of the "ensemble dancers." I found a lot of their movements too jerky and again, they pulled my focus from the singers.

Mykal Kilgore was a force of nature and did an excellent job. Solea Pfieffer was exquisite and beautiful. I love Colin Donnell's voice and enjoyed him, but his songs are the weakest of the lot. Shoshana Bean did well in her first comic song "Just One Step," but not as well in "Surabya Santa" in the 2nd act. And was she supposed to be showing that much of herself in that bit?

I was clearly in the minority of appreciation for the show, as the audience was quite vocal in their appreciation even before the show started. It got a bit annoying to me actually, as the applause overrode the lyrics of the start and ending of some songs.

Jordan Catalano said: "What’s the run time?"



tonight it ran slightly over 2 hours including the intermission (started at 7:30 and ended around 9:35)

@JBC3, the stick needs to come out if you think it's inappropriate HERE. It can stay in halfway for other shows

ETA examples, take "Wicked" and "Avenue Q," which were written around the same time. If you're annoyed at riffing in "Defying Gravity," take the stick out and throw it outside of the theatre. If you're annoyed at riffing in "Purpose," it can stay partially in. It totally depends on the show or even the particular song.

Updated On: 6/28/18 at 12:57 AM

I think this show it makes 100% perfect sense. It's basically, like someone else said, a cabaret act with a bigger budget. Each song wants/needs to stand out. I get it. I don't think that's wrong. In a full acting performance, that's when I think riffing can take a turn. Like in Dear Evan Hanse. I don't think Evan is a riffer. It doesn't suit his character.